It's A Loud, Loud Life After All
by ratluck1
Summary: The Loud Family has been invited to stay in a mansion for a weekend while their parents attend to some legal work. Rated T for mild language and some slightly suggestive content later on.
1. Chapter 1

It was an "average" night in the Loud house. In a family of one boy and ten girls with unique personalities, nights like these can tend to be a little…chaotic, to say the least. Though all of the Loud siblings were unique in their own ways, they've always had one common thread that tied them together.

But don't let ME, the humble guest narrator, spoil the answer for you. Instead, let's take a look at our colorful cast of siblings and what they all have in common.

Lori A. Loud and Leni B. Loud were busy trying out some of their mother's old (yet rather well-kept) dresses that they had found in the very dark recesses of the Loud family attic. Lori took her name from her aunt on her mother's side, which was supposedly the result of a "pinkie promise" the two had made when they were young. Leni, however, was named after Lennie Small, a dim-witted character from her mother's favorite book, _Of Mice and Men._ Whether by destiny or some strange cosmic coincidence, Leni and her namesake had more similarities than one would think.

Directly across the hall, Luna C. Loud sat in her bed, practicing a few cords on her trusted acoustic guitar. When deciding on a name for their third-born child, Lynn and Rita Loud took inspiration from a few of their favorite musicians. Her father, a big fan of classic rock, cited _The Dark Side of the Moon_ as to where her name from. Rita, being a little bit more alternative, claims her name came from a Smashing Pumpkins tune. Whatever the case may be, Luna Loud was born with a love for all things musical.

Directly across from her was her slightly younger sister, Luan D. Loud. Her name didn't really have a complex meaning, instead coming from a funny co-worker Lynn Sr. used to work with in college. On this particular night in the Loud house, she was practicing some stand-up to herself in the mirror.

Next door to the aforementioned purple-and-yellow tandem, Lynn E. Loud Jr. and Lucy F. Loud were busy reading books that piqued their own individual interests. Lynn, who was simply named after her father, was reading the autobiography of her favorite hockey star, Wayne Gretsky. Lucy, whose name came from Latin word for "light", was busy perusing her half-finished collection of Edgar Alan Poe classics. Ironic, eh?

Lana G. Loud and Lola H. Loud were in the next room, a little less active than the troublesome twins usually were. As both of the girls had recently come down with a very nasty cold, both girls were fast asleep in their respective beds. Believe it or not, Lana and Lola's names actually came from a spy show Lynn Sr. used to watch as a kid. No one could have foreseen how "loud" these twins would grow up to be.

Across the way from the sleeping twins was the room belonging to kid genius Lisa I. Loud and thumb-sucking extraordinaire Lily J. Loud. Lisa, named after her grandmother, was busy mixing different acids and bases together to create a highly effective cleansing solution for fecal matter (also known as "poop spray"). Lily, whose name came from an anniversary gift her mother received, was fast sleep in her crib.

So again I ask: what do all of these kids have in common? You guessed it, the correct answer is…

Names. All of the Louds had origins to their first names, and naturally shared the same last name. All of which, except one.

In the old broom closet-turned-bedroom at the end of the hall, there sat a sad eleven year old boy with snow white hair in his desk chair. Lincoln Loud, the only boy in a family of eleven children, sat with his head face-down on his desk.

Now, I know what you all might be asking: why wasn't Lincoln narrating this episode himself? Why wasn't he as happy-go-lucky as he usually is? Again, not my jurisdiction. But let's listen to his lamenting and see if we can find out that way.

"It's really not fair." Lincoln sighed as he dimmed his desk lamp. "Where did my name come from?"

For some reason, Lincoln has never been able to get a clear answer from his parents. While his mom and dad had no problem with telling the origin stories of his sister's names to any of them, Lincoln's name always elicited such a…strange response when asked about. None of the Loud siblings were entirely sure of why this was, nor did anyone have a plausible explanation.

Even though he knew it was a trivial bit of information, Lincoln couldn't let it go. He just wasn't able to get it out of his head, to just let it slide. Was it something he did? Was it something personal against Lincoln himself? Did his parents possibly resent him for his namesake?

"They can't hate me for it…can they?" he asked himself as he continued to brainstorm ideas and theories about his identity. His brainstorming would be cut short by a loud banging noise coming from below.

"KIDS! FAMILY MEETING IN FIVE MINUTES!" Lynn Sr. bellowed from the bottom of the stairs, tapping the banister with a hammer from his toolbelt to get the eleven kid's attention.

Lincoln jolted to his feet, his inquiry pushed toward the back of his mind as he and his sisters poked their heads out from their rooms, looking at each other with curious gazes. As loud as their father was, his shouting and hammering had no effect on Lily, Lola and Lana, as they remained deep in their own slumbers.

Lori groaned, and directed her irritation towards her brother. "Lincoln, what did you do this time?"

"Yeah! What did you do this time, Linc?" Lynn added, balancing her book on her head now.

"I didn't do anything!" Lincoln protested, flicking off his lamp before entering the hallway. "Besides, my money would be on Lori running up the phone bill again."

"So, how does she get down from the bill?" Leni asked, poking her head out below Lori's. This garnered a chuckle from Luan.

"Ha! I get it! Good one, Leni!"

"…Get what?" Leni asked, genuinely confused.

"Oy! Instead of sitting here ponderin', let's go ask Mum and Dad." Luna added, putting her six-string away in its worn out velvet case "I just hope we didn't wake the beast of burden, bros."

Lincoln nodded, following his sisters down the steps. Little did he know, his quest for answers would soon be over, and a new adventure for the entire Loud family would soon begin.


	2. Chapter 2

**Howdy, folks! I'm not going to make a habit of making pre-story notes like this, but I feel like it could do well with just a TINY bit of extra information. I've gotten up to chapter seven written on paper, and as it turns out, this thing is going to be LOOOONG. As a busy college student, however, I would be absolutely delighted to have viewer's thoughts, input, and even an editor if anyone feels compelled. Any tips or advice is also greatly appreciated.**

 **Now that THAT heap of author notes is done, let me also clarify that I'll be trying to keep everyone as close to their in-universe character as possible. However, artistic liberties I shall take, and it will definitely show a little with Lincoln. Also, the story is rated T for some possible suggestive content later on. Anyway, back to the show!**

Lincoln and the rest of his (conscious) sisters funneled their way into the Loud Family's living room, all scrambling to secure the ever-coveted "sweet spot" for themselves. Only Lincoln and Lisa abstained from the intense skirmish for the cushion, sitting side-by-side on the loveseat.

"So, what do you think mom and dad want?" Lincoln asked his four year old sister as they watched the carnage unfold before their eyes.

"Well, if I had to venture a guess…judging by the amount of force our paternal unit was exerting on the banister and the decibel level he was calling for us with, multiplied by the constant…" Lisa continued to ramble on as she did a few complicated calculations that Lincoln didn't much care to follow.

"Lisa, speak Lincoln for a sec?" Lincoln understood the finer points of how to deal with his sisters, and this was the easiest way to get the young genius to get to the point. Lisa wasn't bothered by this in the slightest, and actually appreciated her brother's frankness and honesty.

"…either somebody died, or Charles pooped in our parent's bed again."

Lincoln chuckled, causing a grin to appear on Lisa's face. It wasn't that often that Lisa joked with someone to any capacity, but Lincoln was lucky enough to get a peek at her funny side once in a while.

"But seriously, Lincoln. I think whatever this is about, mom and dad must be really worked up over. I don't think it's something as trivial as our pet's defecation on one's bedsheets." Lisa said, losing her smirk as the commotion to their right seemed to die down. Lynn seemed to be the victor of the Loud House Sweet Spot Battle Royale (patent pending). The other girls found their seats as Rita and Lynn Sr. came in from the kitchen, taking their seats at the front of the family.

"Now, kids, we've got some good news and some bad news tonight." Rita had a noticeably calmer disposition than her husband, albeit still not as energetic as she normally would be. "The good ne-"

"Are we getting a new puppy?" Lynn asked excitedly, cutting their mother off. Of course, in a family as large as the Louds, constant and frequent interruptions were more common than not.

"Oh! Maybe we're getting, like, new wardrobes!" Leni exclaimed, butting in after Lynn.

"Please tell me we're tinting the windows to make the house as black as my soul…"

"WE'RE GETTING A POOL?!"

"Obviously, we're getting more data on the family plan. If Bobby and I have to…"

"QUIET!"

Lincoln and Lisa almost jumped off of their seats at their father's outburst. Leonard Loud had always been a goofy, yet kindhearted man. In fact, every man in the Loud family lineage going back at LEAST ten generations has always been known to be a little…quirky, to say the least. But never mean or rude. Long story short, Lincoln and his sisters NEVER saw their father like this before. Their father cleared his throat, now taking the reins to keep the meeting in order.

"Now, kids, your mother and I just got off the phone with Mr. Johnson down the street…"

Lincoln raised his hand, not wanting to invoke the wrath of his father again. After being given a nod from his mother, Lincoln asked his question. "You mean Mr. Johnson, the attorney?"

"Yes." Mr. Loud continued. "Mr. Johnson was contacting us on behalf of Mr. and Mrs. Lovecraft. Apparently, we've been invited to a funeral at their manor."

This time, Lori raised her hand. "Wait, are we talking about the 'wealthiest family in Michigan' Lovecraft family?" This time, her mother answered.

"Yes, dear. We actually were… _used_ to be good friends with them in college."

"Used to? What happened?" Lincoln' curiosity was piqued, enough to forget to raise his hand. His father shot an intense glare at him before letting out a hefty sigh.

"Lincoln…It's a long story. Let's just stay on topic, please? I don't want to talk about it right now." He cleared his throat again, turning his attention to the whole family again. "What's important is, we've been invited to their mansion for the weekend for the funeral and the distribution of their will."

"Wait! The Lovecrafts are dead?!" The sisters began to get riled up again, but were quickly silenced after a single look from their already on-edge dad.

"…Anyway, as I was saying… Lori, you'll be staying home with Lily and the twins for the weekend. Leni, Luna, Luan, Lucy, Lynn, Lincoln, Lisa, I want you all to pack for the trip."

Sensing her father's ire simmering down, Luan chimed in. "Why were we invited? I mean, I know you and mom had some beef with them, but none of us even knew the cow!"

…

…

…

"…I'm going to let that slide, Luan, on the grounds that it was a TINY bit funny." For the first time that night, Lynn Loud Sr.'s face lit up with a smile. "Apparently, they specifically asked for us to bring our children. We don't really know what for, so we're bringing as many healthy Louds as we can. Anywho, meeting adjourned. Except for you, Lincoln. Your mom and I need to speak to you in-confidendo."

" _Well, at least it seems like dad is back to his goofy self."_ Lincoln thought, noting his dad's incorrect use of some foreign language. Lincoln was now alone with his parent's in the living room, his sisters quickly bailing at the word "adjourned".

"So, Dad…what do you want to talk to me about?" Lincoln sat in the sweet spot, which happened to be closer to his mother. She flashed him a genuine smile before speaking.

"Lincoln… have we ever told you why your name is Lincoln?" Linc shook his head, his previous inquiries and theories popping back into his brain. "Well…we named you after Mr. Lovecraft. Lincoln Lovecraft was a dear friend of ours a long time ago…but we feel like you deserve a more decisive answer for why we've been iffy on telling you this."

His father picked up from where she left off. "Lincoln and I, a long time ago, agreed to name our boys after each other. Even though he and I didn't see eye to eye sometimes…he was a good friend of mine."

As suddenly as his earlier outburst, Lynn Sr. began to cry. Actually, saying he was 'crying' might be a little bit of an understatement. It was more like a 'tsunami of tears pouring down his face." Regardless of the intensity, Rita made a valiant attempt to wipe the tears from his face as he regained his composure.

"So…Lincoln…can you do us a big favor?" Lincoln's father was staring directly at him now, trying his best to keep a happy face.

Lincoln walked up to his father, wrapping his arms around him as tightly as he could. This caused a wide smile to form on the Loud patriarch's face. "Sure, dad. Anything."

"Well… do you think you could try cheering up Leon? I mean, I can't imagine how he's feeling now, with both of his parents passing away at such a young age…"

Without even giving it a second thought, Lincoln tightened his grip on his dad. He couldn't imagine what he'd do without his mom or dad, much less BOTH of them. Even if Leon's father wronged Lincoln's own parents, he had no reason or urge to wish the death of both parents on anyone. In fact, Lincoln was determined to make sure Leon made it through this tough time alright.

"Absolutely. You can count on me, dad."

Both Lynn Sr. and Rita smiled down at their son, sensing his determination and kind nature taking over, both qualities they knew Lincoln had in spades.

"Thanks, son. Now go pack and get some sleep." His father gave him a firm pat on the back. "Your mother and I love you."

"I love you guys too. Please…take it easy?" Lincoln often found himself comforting his siblings, but this was the first time he ever tried cheering up his parents. With an affirmative nod from his dad and a kiss goodnight from his mother, Lincoln returned to his room and began his preparation for his weekend mission.


	3. Chapter 3

**Quick author's note, everyone. The name "Leon" comes from Leonard, which is what I'm referring to Lynn Sr. as. Aside from that, I do write these and type this up very late in the morning, so I'm sorry for any technical issues or anything in general that's not up to par with what some would normally read here. Enjoy Chapter 3. Also, everyone is only a tad bit older here than the show.**

Once the family meeting was over, all of the girls returned to their respective rooms to pack for the upcoming weekend trip. This was a trivial affair for most all of the Loud sisters, as they were already accustomed to last-minute trips to their Aunt Ruth's house. However, an interesting exchange occurred in the bedroom of Luna and Luan Loud.

"Dude, check it out!" Luna said as she pulled up a web-page on her laptop. "The Lovecrafts really are spirits in the sky now, sis."

Luan peered over her shoulder, folding and packing a pair of panties using her sister's shoulder. "Man, that's DEATH-INATELY sad. Find anything about their mansion?"

Luna pushed her shoulder forward, nudging Luan and her undies a short distance away before continuing.

"Yeah, man. These guys were pretty loaded. Four pools, four garages, four private yatches…" Luna's eyes widened as she scrolled down the page. "DUDE! They own a record company AND a four-star night club, both right in their backyard!"

"Well, they were pretty FOURtunete to have so much wealth." Luan joked as she had already finished packing her suitcase. She strolled back over to her sister's chair and rested her chin on Luna's shoulder. She pointed at a highlighted word in the article. "Wait, is that the name of the night-club right there?"

Luna nodded.

"Seems to be. You recognize it?" She soon found herself out of a chair, as Luan pushed her completely off of it and took it for herself.

"Of course! The Funny Bone is one of the biggest comedy clubs in the Midwest! George Carlin and Bill Cosby both made their professional starts there! Not to mention Marty Roth, Johnathon Glasswork, Billy Kay…" Luan continued to ramble off numerous names of famous comedians as Luna found her way back to her feet, brushing off the dust from falling off her chair.

"Dude, calm down. What's the record label they've got there?" Luna asked, packing away her proper funeral attire. "They sign anyone rockin'?"

Luan scrolled down, finding a full list of musicians signed to "Sub-Rock Records". " I don't know, does MICK SWAGGER ring any bells?"

Within an instant, Luan's stolen spot on the chair was quickly re-taken by Luna, who shoved Luan so hard that she flew into the wall, knocking more than a dozen of her own plastic spiders ontop of her.

"OH MY LORD! MICK FREAKIN' SWAGGER?" Luna shouted with her favorite British accent. After a few moments of shock and awe, Luna was then quickly scouring the list for other prominent musicians signed to the label, which she noticed was almost never-ending. "Smootch, the Sloppy Seconds, Vested Interest…dude, this list is sick!"

Luan dug her way out from under her spiders, glancing over her sister's shoulder once again while dangling a fake spider on her neck. "The cool stuff you can find on the "web", get it?"

"Woah, dude. Check this out. Apparently, both were personal projects run and owned by…Leonard Lovecraft, the owner's kid. "Luna said, ignoring the spider. " Looks here like he scouts all talent and signs them himself. He's right about our age."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive." The yellow-plaid clad comedian tossed her spider back into the box. "Anything else about him?"

"Yeah. The dude's apparently a recluse. Doesn't get out much." Luna pointed out a small line of text towards the bottom of the screen. "And it seems like he was being pressured to get hitched by his parents before they croaked."

"So? What's your point?" Luan asked, pulling up her own chair now and started chugging some water from her nightstand.

"So, if he doesn't have much exposure to chicks…" Luna smirked, turning towards her sister. "What if one of us landed him?"

Luan immediately did a spit take, drenching Luna in backwash. After a brief moment of recovery, Luan's smile began to resemble her sister's.

"You mean, if one of us were to date and marry him…we'd be in prime position to sign with these guys, and be rich on top of it?"

Luna nodded. "That's exactly right, sis. Even says here that he's gone on record saying he has a thing for brown haired babes." Both of the girls felt their heads, chuckling like excited schoolgirls. Normally kind and good-natured, both girls were completely absorbed by the thoughts of fame and fortune.

"Luna, this might be one of your best ideas ever! So, we'll both try to flirt with him over the weekend? I mean, all for one and one for all, right?" Luan walked over to her suitcase, rotating out her outfits to find something a little more…attractive for her weekend pursuit. Eventually, she found her short, yellow plaid dress with a generously low neckline.

" _This should be perfect."_ Luan thought to herself before her sister's response.

"Absolutely right, love. Shouldn't be too hard to find at his own parent's funeral, right?" Luna returned to her bed, packing her tight lavender dress and leggings for the same devious intent as Luan.

" _Man, this'll sure get his attention."_ Luna thought, finishing up her packing for the weekend. Her train of thought was broken by a familiar voice shouting from downstairs.

"Girls, time for bed! We've got a decently long drive tomorrow!"

After putting their suitcases by the entrance to their room, both Luna and Luan returned to their respective beds, tuckered out from the previous day's affairs. As the two elder sisters started to drift away into their own pleasant dreamscapes, a single set of similar thoughts swam through the brains of both the rocker and the comedian.

" _Man, after I rock that boy's world, he and his stuff will be all mine. "_ was Luna's subconscious declaration.

" _No joke, I ain't leaving until that man belongs to me. I'm not clowin' around."_ was Luan's.

Little did the girls know that their aspirations for fame and fortune (and their devious plan to attain said fortune and fame) would lead them down a long and winding road.


	4. Chapter 4

**New chapter here, everybody! Thank you very much for keeping with it this far.**

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Dude, we almost there?"

"Almost."

"…"

"… Are we there yet?"

"NO!"

Alas, the fun and dramatically intense discussions in the Loud Family vehicle on a long car ride. Even without Lola, Lana, Lilly and Lori, the Loud Family car ride was just that: loud.

At least, until Lincoln sat forward decided to speak what had been bothering him since the night before. Lincoln usually didn't talk much in the car, but he had some lingering concerns over the previous night's family meeting.

"Hey, Dad…Can you tell us about Mr. Lovecraft?" Lincoln asked, cutting through his sister's rambling and interjections. Lincoln was fully expecting his father to either shake off the inquiry or even get upset like he did the night before. Lynn. Sr. kept his eyes on the road, but spoke in a much calmer tone then he had.

"Well, I guess there'd be no harm in it. What do you want to know?" he asked, opening the question up to all seven of his curious children. Luckily for Lincoln, he was the first to respond.

"How did you and Mr. Lovecraft meet?" he asked.

Lynn Sr. gave a low chuckle. "Believe it or not, it was actually thanks to our names that we became good friends. As you all may know, Lynn isn't the most common name for a boy, especially back in my day."

The girls (and Lincoln) nodded, with the exception of Leni, who was a tad bit confused.

"I thought your name was Lynn, Lynn." Leni said, pointing at the little athlete sitting next to her. She was ignored, however, as Mr. Loud continued his story.

"Well, one day in the third grade I was being picked on by a particularly mean group of kids. It was lunchtime, and your grandmother packed me lunch for that day." He took a quick glance back at his children before continuing. "Charles, the biggest and meanest of the bunch, threw my lunch away."

Lincoln felt a surge of anger flow through him at that moment, although this wasn't exclusive to him. Hearing about their father being bullied like that was enough to make the blood of any of the Loud siblings boil.

"Oy, that's terrible!" Luna shouted.

"Man, I don't know how you could stomach that." Luan added.

"So, what did you do?" Lincoln asked, eager to hear more.

"Well, I didn't do anything. It was Lincoln that stood up for me." The kids could now see their father's smile in the mirror's reflection. "He asked them what was wrong with my name. When they told Mr. Lovecraft that I had a girl's name, he just laughed and laughed."

"I'm failing to see how Mr. Lovecraft was a friend to you. With social conventions at the time, wouldn't that have been him picking on you as well?" Lisa asked, now taking an active interest in the story.

"Well, Lisa, he wasn't laughing at my name. If I remember correctly, he said he was laughing at the "criminal misuse of logic and bullying conventions" or something like that. He always did say things using oddly large or strange words." Mr. Loud chuckled again, glancing at Lisa. "You two would have had a lot in common."

Lisa blushed, hiding her face by the book she was reading. "I fail to see ho- I mean, I don't see how…"

"So, what happened next? Did you suffer from the unyielding hunger before succumbing to your darker inner-desires?" All of the sisters looked at Lucy, who everyone had completely forgotten was along for the ride.

" _I always forget about Lucy."_ Lincoln thought, not being the first time Lucy's presence had surprised him.

Mr. Loud promptly answered her question, continuing the story. "No, honey, I did not. Now, Lincoln Lovecraft had a very well- known family back in those days."

"Dude, were they loaded even back then?" Luna asked.

"Nope. Quite the opposite. The Lovecrafts were the poorest family in Royal Oaks. Not even a penny to their name. That didn't stop Lincoln for buying me lunch." Lynn Sr.'s smile widened as he reminisced. "No matter how much I protested, he would buy me lunch and insist I eat it. He told me, "Don't give those bullies any satisfaction. Don't let them win", he'd say…from then on out, we were thick as thieves. We did almost everything together."

"Woah, dude. What a bromance." Luna teased.

"Sounds like Mr. Lovecraft was a really nice guy." Lincoln said, smiling at his dad's smile in the mirror.

"Yeah, Lincoln was more than my best friend, all the way through college. Heck, we even did a musical-comedy duo after we graduated. Good ole' LYNCOLN LOUDCRAFT AND THEIR LOVELY LOONY MACHINES." Lynn Sr. yelled out and spelled out the name in lights, imaging a big billboard with their band name in lights before focusing back on the road.

Her husband's excited shouting roused Rita Loud from her nap, groaning. "Ugh, no wonder where Luna and Luan get their interests from…" she said as she quickly slipped back into her slumber.

Luna and Luan beamed at that statement, giving each other a high five before turning back to their father.

"So dad, whatever happened?" Luan asked, leaning forward. "You seemed a little…tense about the subject last night."

Lynn Sr. cleared his throat, his tone dropping to a more serious level. "Well…he didn't approve of me and your mother. Once he found out we were dating, we had a big fight. We hadn't spoken since."

"Dude! What was wrong with mom?" Lynn asked. She noticed her dad's eyes narrowing, quickly adding. "I mean, what didn't he like? Mom is awesome!"

"It's…complicated."

Lincoln noticed a newly familiar…uneasiness… in his father's voice. The same uneasiness he felt during the meeting. He also noticed that the family's care was now directly in front of the gates to what looked to be a gated community.

"Hey, dad, where are we?" Lincoln asked, not familiar with this gated community on the edge of Royal Woods.

"Oh, boy! Look at that. We're here." Mr. Loud's tone became much more jovial. "Welcome to the Lovecraft Mansion, kids."

All of the kids pressed themselves against the windows, trying to take it all in. What, at first, looked like a gated community was turning into one large estate. Capturing the bulk of the landscape was a gigantic chrome building, looking more akin to a palace than a simple mansion. The outside walls were engraved with some sort of a goldish tint, with large stained marble pillars supporting the massive structure, or at least what the Loud family could see from the front.

After their father checked in at the front gate, they were directed by what felt like a million security guards to a side parking garage, where Lincoln assumed is where most of the guests for the funeral would be parked. The second the family found a parking place and settled in, they were swarmed by a dozen security guards from earlier, grabbing everything they could from the trunk.

"Hey, what are they doing with our stuff?" Leni asked, her purse being taken from her by one of the bigger, burlier men.

"Pardon the interruption, but is our service not to your liking?" asked a voice in a very soft, dainty voice.

The Loud family turned towards the new voice they heard, and were stunned by what they saw. Standing in front of them was an absolute monster of a man in a black dress shirt. Standing about a foot taller than Mr. Loud, the fair-skinned man had muscles protruding from his very tight dress shirt, actually ripping parts of it. Above the massive muscles was a short gelled bleach-blonde hairstyle with dark brown eyes that looked like they could kill an elephant in a single glance.

"Woah, dude. What is that?" Luna whispered to Lincoln, the monster in front of her dwarfing even the largest roadie she's ever met.

"I-I-Ithinkheworkshere." Lincoln replied, struggling to get any coherent words out.

The man quickly scanned the rather large family, before setting his gaze on Mr. Loud. For being such a large and muscular man, he seemed to be very intimidated by their father.

"No, it's great. Will our bags be taken to our rooms?" Lynn Sr. casually asked, before looking up to see the man's face.

The man spoke in his softer, more reserved tone once again. "Of course, sir." He turned his head to the side, almost like he was trying to hide his face from Mr. Loud. After a few seconds, Lincoln's father snapped his fingers.

"Wait a minute…Charles S. Hertz, is that you?! I haven't seen you since high school!"

The massive butler's face turned beet red, finally facing Lynn Sr. face to face.

"Yes, Lynn. It's me. Follow me to your rooms." The man mumbled, clearly showing signs of embarrassment. "How've you been, Lynn?"

"Very good, Charlie, very good. Kids, I'd like you to meet Charlie, the "School Strongman", we called him." Lynn turned to his kids and motioned for them to follow along. Lincoln and his sisters just stood in shock and awe for a few moments, before piecing it together.

"Dad…was this your school bully?" Lynn whispered, following closely behind her father as they trailed behind the gigantic butler. Her father just smirked and nodded as they were lead up a spiraling, silver walkway that lead inside the mansion.

Once inside, the kids couldn't help but marvel at what they were seeing. The main room shimmered and sparkled like a diamond in the sunlight. Just like outside, the main room was supported by even larger marble pillars, each engraved with gemstones of many different shapes and colors. The walls were decorated with many items hanging amidst a stunning mural that spread all around the room. This main room alone was as big as Lincoln's house.

"Wooooooah." All of the Loud siblings said in unison.

"Is this real?" Leni asked, admiring the long, royal red banners hanging from the ceiling. "Like, am I dreaming?"

"I don't think I could ever even dream this." Lincoln lamented, awestruck by the sheer size of the room.

"I usually prefer the darkness, but this is just as breathtaking." Lucy said, her usual monotone fading. "This…this is incredible."

"Rockin' digs, bro." Luna added.

Charles stopped and turned around, clearing his throat.

"Excuse me, but this is where we part for now. " Charles said. "My subordinate shall be here shortly. He will be your personal assistant for your stay here. Mr. and Mrs. Loud, if you both would be so kind as to follow me to the study, where we'll meet the rest of the beneficiaries of the Lovecraft estate. From there, we can begin the distribution of the estate. "

"Oh, of course." Rita replied, turning towards her children. "Kids, I want you all to be on your very best behavior."

"Don't worry, mom. We'll be fine." Lincoln said, giving her a quick hug. "Besides, we're going to have our very own assistant!"

"Someone who can't say no to testing my experiments?" Lisa asked.

"Someone to return my foul balls?" Lynn asked.

"Someone to do my nails?" Leni asked.

"This is going to be the BEST WEEKEND EVER!" Lincoln cheered, as his sisters joined in in agreement. And in many ways, they weren't wrong. However, Lincoln knew he had a promise to keep. For his sisters and him, this whole new environment was thrilling and exciting, but he knew that for Leon, it wouldn't be quite as fun. Despite that, he knew that he was going to do his best to this the best weekend ever not only for him and his sisters, but for Leon as well.

Or, at least, he hoped.


	5. Chapter 5

About an hour had passed, and the Loud family was starting to get…bored. Lucy and Lisa were playing chess on a small travel-sized chess board. Luna and Luan were running song lyrics and jokes past each other, respectively. Lynn, who was still fascinated by the royal ambience, was busy admiring awards and trophies that were lining the walls on one side of the room. A few feet away, Lincoln was teaching Leni how to play rock-paper-scissors.

"Okay, let's try this again, Leni. " Lincoln sighed, trying another round with his older sister. "Rock, paper…" Lincoln picked paper. Leni picked rock…for the twentieth time in a row.

"Did I win?" Leni asked, excited at the prospect.

"Sorry, Leni. I won again. Why don't you try picking paper or scissors next time?" Lincoln said, trying to encourage diversity.

"…what were the other options again?" Lincoln face palmed.

"Hey, guys! Did you know that Mr. Lovecraft owns a pro-wrestling promotion?" Lynn asked excitedly, bouncing up and down next to them. "Mr. Lovecraft was a former heavyweight champion. His mom was a champion, too." She pulled Lincoln and Leni over to the championship belts, pointing at the large gold belts in the trophy case. She then directed their attention over to a smaller, silver belt.

"This one says it was won by some guy named Leon." Lynn slugged her brother's shoulder. "Who the heck is he?"

"Oh, that's their son." Lincoln explained, nursing his slugged shoulder. "Dad told me about him a little bit last night. He wants me to hang out with him this weekend." At the mere mention of his name, Luna and Luan shot up and jogged over to their siblings.

"Oy, dad asked you to hang with Leon?" Luna asked, with Lincoln quickly nodding in affirmation. "Bro, you mind if I tag along?"

Lincoln looked at her with a puzzled expression on his face. "Sure, but why do you want to hang with us?"

"Uh…uh…" Luna stumbled, not expecting that question from her brother. "You know, bro…any new ears to test my new licks on is a good time for me." Luan popped her head over her sister's shoulder, chiming in.

"Same here with my jokes. Besides, we all need somebody to LEON, right?" She gave a full-force chuckle, as her siblings groaned in response. "Get it?"

"Dude! I want in too!" Lynn said, butting in. "He's a former wrestling champion. I wanna prove how tough Lynn Loud can be."

" _A wrestling champion, eh? That's gotta mean he's got a pretty good b-"_ Luna thought, being cut off by a new voice in the conversation.

"I'd like to meet him, too. He might end up being a vampire prince." Lucy stated in her usual monotone.

"Whilst not technically royalty, he might be wealthy enough to qualify as a legitimate prince." Lisa added, packing up the board. "That being said, I'd like to pick his brain as well."

Luan and Luna shot a worried glance at each other. How were either of them going to get a chance with Leon when surrounded by their sisters and Lincoln? As both of the scheming sisters ran their contingency plans through their heads, Lincoln directed his sister's attention to the large marble staircase.

"P-pardon me, sir and madams…I'm sorry for keeping you waiting, it seems I got lost in the mansion…"

Emerging from the stairs was a young man who looked nothing like his supervisor. Unlike Charles, this man was much younger, shorter, and less muscular. The man looked to be a young adult, but Lincoln wasn't entirely sure how old. He was wearing a white dress shirt and black dress pants, looking more like a server at a fancy restraint than a butler. His brown hair was more unkempt than Charles slicked-back hairdo, and where as Charles looked like a freak of nature, his body was skinny and lean. While still very tall, this boy was closer to their dad's height rather than Charles. Lincoln was the first to approach him, offering his hand.

"That's okay. We're good at keeping busy. My name is Lincoln Loud, and these are my sisters Leni, Luna, Luan, Lynn, and Lisa." Lincoln turned to his sisters, with Lucy appearing right in front of him. "Ah! And Lucy…I always forget Lucy…" The boy butler gave a slight chuckle as he shook Lincoln's hand.

"P-pleasure to meet you all. My name is Erik. I'll be your personal assistant for this weekend." He said, bowing politely. His tone was very straightforward, not showing a lot of inflections or emotions aside from his natural nervousness and goofiness. "If you would follow me, I'll take you all to your rooms."

The Loud siblings followed their new butler down a long hallway, passing by an almost infinite number of doors.

"Gee, must be pretty easy to get lost here." Lincoln commented, following closely behind their assistant.

"Yes, I suppose it is." Erik said, checking his pockets for their room keys as he led the bunch to the end of a new hallway. "It's strange, I've known this place for about sixteen years, and I still get lost."

"Waaaait a minute!" Lynn said, raising her voice. "You've been here sixteen years?!"

"Yeah, how old are you?" Luna said, eying him closely. "I mean, you look no older than us."

Erik sighed, checking the room numbers in front of them. "I've known the young master since we were infants."

"Young master? Do you mean Leon?" Lincoln asked.

"Yes, sir." He replied, unlocking the door. "This room is for Miss Lisa and Miss Leni." He held the door open as the two entered their assigned room. After shutting the door, he walked across the hall to the adjacent room, unlocking it as well.

"So, that means you knew his parents?" Lincoln asked, a little less enthusiastically, given their fates.

"Miss Lucy and Miss Lynn, this room is for you." He said, closing the door behind them before answering Lincoln's question. "Yes, I did. They were very generous and wonderful people. This way." He motioned to the last two doors in the hallway. Luna and Luan were now flanking both sides of the butler.

"So, when will we get to meet Leon?" Luan asked, giving her sister a knowing glance.

"Sadly, the young master hasn't quite been himself lately." Erik sighed again. "He's also very wary of people this weekend. He's not exactly the most…social individual."

Erik proceeded to unlock the door on the left, opening it with a little bow. "Miss Luna and Miss Luan, this room belongs to you two."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I gotta check this place out a little more, bro." Luna said, crossing her arms. "Besides, it's only the afternoon! I wanna check out the studio."

"Yeah, and I think I'd di-"Luan quickly aborted her insensitive joke. "I'd be remiss if I didn't check out the comedy club!"

Erik fumbled with the keys in his hand. "I was told to give you all a tour at seven o'clock. Will that suffice?" Both girls rapidly nodded their heads, and quickly ducked into their room. Erik used the last key on his ring to open the door to their right.

"Mr. Lincoln…" he began, starting to sound like a broken record.

"Actually, Erik, you can just call me Lincoln." Lincoln said, feeling a little uncomfortable with such formalities. He looked up and noticed a slight look of shock on Erik's face.

"O-okay, Mr. Lin- Lincoln. "He said, opening the door and clearing his throat. "I'm dreadfully sorry, but we ran out of rooms proper, so you're going to have a roommate for the evening, until we can find other accommodations."

Lincoln entered the room, noticing his things were neatly placed on one of the room's two beds. On the other side of the room, he noticed a large bookshelf hanging above the second bed, filled to the brim with magazines of some sort. Upon closer inspection, Lincoln noticed a familiar logo across all of them.

"Woah! Is this…is this a limited first edition Ace Savvy comic?!" Lincoln exclaimed, instinctively grabbing it. Lincoln had always wondered what it would feel like to touch such a masterfully crafted limited edition comic book, and the feeling was just as heavenly as he had thought. He was brought out of his trance by a familiar voice.

"Um…Mr. Li- sorry, I mean Lincoln?" Erik asked, lowering his tone to a hush. "You're a fan of Ace Savvy?"

"Oh, the biggest! I've cosplayed as him over, like, a dozen times! He's the best!" Lincoln squeed excitedly, still clutching the limited edition in his arms. "Like, I LOVE the time when he defeated the Queen of Clubs with his Royal Flush Attack-"

"Oh, you mean…" Erik dropped his calm demeanor and held his arms out in a spade shape, lunging forward into a very dramatic pose. "MY ROYAL FLUSH ATTACK?"

Lincoln laughed, and dramatically fell on the bed, selling the "attack".

"AUGH! You have defeated me, Ace Savvy! Curses!" he shouted, playing the part of the Queen. "How did you defeat me?" Erik smiled, and posed next to Lincoln as they shouted in unison.

"I defeated you because…I AM ACE SAVVY, THE WORLD'S SAVVIEST CRIME FIGHTER!"


	6. Chapter 6

' **Sup, mates? Ratluck1 here! I'd like to apologize for a few things before getting on with the chapter. First of all, I'd like to apologize for a lack of quality in last chapter's ending. I lost the last page of my original draft, so I had a little more of an abrupt ending. Secondly, I'd like to apologize for these next few chapters. I rated this fic "T" primarily for suggestive content and nudity. There will be a bit of both coming up, but no explicit sexual content in this fic. Apologizing ahead of time, will flip rating to "M" if I'm told I misunderstood the fanfiction rating system.**

 **Anywho, enjoy! And Happy Thanksgiving as of this post.**

"Dude, he was supposed to give us that tour an hour ago!" Luna griped, sitting with her legs crossed on the floor.

"Maybe he meant seven o'clock central time?" Lisa asked.

"Wait, does that mean there is a left and right time?" Leni wondered, eliciting a tired sigh from her roommate.

"Leni, you need a TIME out." Luan giggled at her own pun. "Get it?"

About four hours had passed, and the Loud sisters were assembled at the end of the hall, in front of the door to Lincoln's room. Patience was definitely not a virtue of the Loud family. Luna and Luan filled their sisters in on the "tour" their assistant was supposed to give them, but after an hour of waiting, they were beginning to grow restless.

"It's about TIME for us to drag Lincoln out here and find that good-for-nothing butler!" Lynn said, knocking on Lincoln's door with the steel folding chair she was holding. "COME ON OUT, LINC!"

Luna scratched her head. "Sis, why do you have a steel seater on ya?"

Lynn waved her lucha-libre mask in Luna's face. "They've got a wrestling arena here and I'm taking on all comers." She punctuated her declaration of superiority by smashing the chair against Lincoln's door again.

"Um, so why don't we just go in and get Lincoln?" Lucy asked, reading her poems while leaning against the wall.

Silence struck the sisters, each one turning to look at one another with almost simultaneous shrugs. Taking charge, Luna leapt to her feet and swept the dust off her skirt.

"Oy, bro! We're coming in!" she shouted as she kicked his door clean open. She wasn't exactly prepared for what was on the other side.

The room was actually a bit smaller than the rooms the girls were given. Compared to their rooms, this one was more of a broom closet. It was only slightly larger than Lincoln's room at home, but looked even more improvised. The walls were covered with faded and torn wallpaper and the carpet looked like it hadn't be cleaned in a century or two. Pipes ran across the ceiling, all rusted and discolored. The only furnishings in the room were the two beds that were shoved side by side and a large bookshelf that sat above the slightly smaller of the two beds.

However, it was what was ON the smaller bed that really caught the Loud sister's attention.

Laying on one side of the bed was their brother Lincoln, reading an exclusive limited edition Ace Savvy comic in his underwear, as he would any other Friday night. Laying parallel on the other side of the bed, however, was a sight the six sisters hadn't seen before. Laying before them was a familiar brown-haired butler, clad in nothing but a pair of bright pink trunks covered with glittery gold stars. Like Lincoln, Erik was reading some sort of comic, but the girls weren't very interested in whatever it was.

Their eyes were glued to the boy's lean frame, looking him up and down. Whilst not particularly muscular, the boy was clearly well built for his age. His body was mostly clean shaven, with the exception of a little patch covering his chest. He wasn't chiseled or buff by any means, but the girls couldn't help but find it…cute. Upon further inspection, the girls noticed the butler's well-shaped eyelashes and sharp, pale blue eyes that were only accentuated by his thick, expressive eyebrows. His head was topped off by even messier hair than before.

" _Man, he's adorable!"_ Luan thought, chuckling at the little soul patch on the teen's chest.

" _Nice bulge, bro."_ Luna smirked, her mind racing down a slightly dirtier path than her siblings.

" _I gotta see if this guy's any good on the court. I need a new center."_ Lynn grinned, thinking about him in her team's basketball jersey.

Of course, by the time the girls noticed his eyes, they were looking straight back at them.

"OH, BLOODY HECK!" he shouted, rolling off the bed and crashing on to the floor Lincoln shot upwards at the crash, looking over at his sisters.

"Oh, hey guys. When did you get here?" He asked, as Erik bumbled and fumbled to put his clothes back on.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry…." Erik repeated, blushing wildly. Lincoln noticed this, and turned to his sisters.

"Guys?! Why didn't you guys knock?" he asked angrily, sliding his own shirt back on. He wasn't angry at them seeing him naked, as his sister's had seen him that way many times before. Erik, however, was another story. Lynn slapped the ground with her chair.

"Dude, I did! Like, twenty times with this thing!" she shot at her brother, still eying the re-robing butler. "You should have heard us, bro!"

"Yeah, bro! We've been waiting for ya!" Luna added, tip-toeing over her sisters to sneak another peak at Erik. By this point, Erik had most of his clothes on, stepping forward as he straightened out his shirt.

"I-I-I'm sorry…I forgot that the p-pipes made it hard to h-h-hear in this room…" Erik stuttered, still blushing profusely as he checked his pocket watch. "I g-guess we lost track of time…"

Lisa, Lucy and Leni were all strangely quiet, slight grins present on their faces.

"Liiiiinky?" Leni teased, her grin ever widening.

"What, Leni?" Lincoln asked, not understanding her ever-growing smile.

"What were…" she started.

"You and Erik…" Lucy added, her smile twice as devious as her sister's.

Lisa, with the widest smile of them all, finished the trios thought with a little sinister flair in her voice, the implication being all too clear.

"…Doing naked in bed?"

The instant those words left her lips, a deep crimson blush crept onto the face of every single one of the Loud siblings, except for Lincoln, who didn't quite get the implication. Erik, however, very much did.

"WE WERE JUST READING COMICS I SWEAR!" he shouted, both he and Lincoln completely dressed now. He pushed past the girls and did his best to hide his face.

"Let's just get on with the tour…"


	7. Thanksgiving Author's Notes

**Hey, guys. Ratluck1 here. So, a little bit of…interesting news about this fic. I had about eighteen chapters written by Thanksgiving Day. Sounds good, right? Well…the house I was staying at…kinda caught on fire. Almost exploded, in fact. Everyone made it out safe and sound, which is the most important part. However, my hard copies of the story aren't exactly readable.**

 **While I am a little bummed about that, I will continue this fic to the best of my ability in regards to how it was going. Ironically, the original draft of this story featured a fire in the Lovecraft Manor. Life moves in mysterious ways, I guess. Anyway, thank you for reading my fic and liking it (if you've read this far, I'm assuming it hasn't repulsed you yet.) Without a Loud House IRC and the show still being relatively new, I really love nothing more than getting messages and reviews from people who have thoughts or opinions on the show or the fanfics. It really makes my day.**

 **Anyway, expect a chapter update soon after this little update. Peace and cheers all around and have a very happy post-Thanksgiving weekend.**

 **Well wishes and warm thoughts,**

 **Ratluck1.**


	8. Chapter 7

"…EW, YOU GIRLS ARE GROSS!"

Lincoln was a little disgusted once Luna explained their sister's initial reactions to the sight of their brother in his underwear in a room with another dude. Lisa, Leni, and Lucy were all snickering rather loudly behind their guide's back, while Lynn and Luan were simply giggling like school-girls.

"Hey, bro. I didn't think nothin' of the sort." Luna smirked. She wasn't exactly lying, but she was a far cry from being innocent about the whole ordeal. "Besides, I'm keeping my options open."

Erik, now fully clothed and leading the girls down the hallway, cleared his throat.

"If I may interject, ladies…" he said, shaking off his embarrassment as best as he could, "I believe one of you is interested in scientific pursuits?"

Lisa sprung forward to the front of the pack, just slightly behind Erik.

"Why, yes. That would be I, Lisa Loud." She beamed, very proud of her interests. "Why do you ask…" her voice faltered for a moment, before falling into the same snickering pattern as her other two sisters. "…Brother?"

Everyone stopped and starred at Lisa. Leni and Lucy took the moment to squee, while the other three sisters stood there confused. Erik looked down at the littlest Loud with a quizzical expression.

"Um, pardon me…Were you referring to Lincoln?" Erik asked, not entirely sure what she had said.

"Yeah, what do you need, sis?" Lincoln asked.

"No, I was simply referring to our generous assistant's…future title." Lisa snickered. "It is customary to refer to the husband of one's brother as a "Brother-in-Law."

Lincoln and Erik's jaws dropped in unison, their faces glowing bright red at the explanation.

"WE WERE JUST READING COMICS!" Erik exclaimed, his voice cracking midway through.

"Lisa, I expected more from you." Lincoln stated, slapping his hand against his forehead.

Lisa simply shrugged. "I am a girl, Lincoln. This is how we are."

"A-a-anyway…" Erik cleared his throat again, getting back on topic. "Both the master and mistress…"

"You mean the dead guys, right?" Lynn asked, receiving a little glare from Lincoln in the process.

Erik let out a heavy sigh.

"Correct. Back to the matter at hand…" he led the group over to a pair of sliding white doors. "Mr. and Mrs. Lovecraft were avid researchers, with Mrs. Lovecraft having three papers published in the last six months. Mr. Lovecraft also recently pattened some experimental fuel pumps that have the potential to revolutionize the auto industry-"

"And energy production as we know it!" Lisa finished, her excitement now visually noticeable as she danced on her feet in place. "I didn't connect that THIS was the same family who made those contributions!"

For a split second, Lincoln thought he saw a very genuine smile on the face of their butler.

"So, I take it that is how they got so rich?" Lincoln asked.

"It is one of their many successful business ventures." Erik replied. He motioned towards the sliding white doors. "Behind these doors lay one of the top ten most expensive and well-equipped laboratories in the entire world." He opened the door to a bright, blinding white light coming from within.

"Welcome…to Lovecraft Tech."

Lisa took point, blinded by the magnificent sight before her. Through the small doorway was a room easily the size of the university she taught at, if not even bigger. Hanging from the center of the room was a gigantic metallic sphere with thousands of multicolored tubes stretching to all four corners of the massive, massive room. The sounds of bubbling test tubes and active tesla coils made Lisa glow with excitement.

"Please, spend as much time here as you wish, Miss Li-"Erik realized that she was already gone, pulling out a clipboard and her goggles.

"Listen up, men! We're going to need highly-enriched plutonium and some apple juice."

Erik smiled again, and closed the door behind them.

"Well, seems like she'll be busy for a while." He observed, looking at the sisters and Lincoln now. "Now, let's continue the tour."


	9. Chapter 8

Without the young genius teasing him about the…compromising position the girls found him in, Erik was only slightly more at ease. His body wasn't shaking, per se, but Lincoln could tell he was far from comfortable with his sisters around by a little tremble in his hands. Being positioned in the back of the tour group gave Lincoln a clear view of his sisters and their…unusual behavior.

Leni was par for the course, simply admiring the elegant drapes and banners hanging from the (very) high-up ceiling. She was usually easily impressed by the most mundane of things, yet this was a time when Lincoln understood her fascination in this instance.

Lucy was also acting like her spooky self, completely absorbed in the occasional gothic décor that made itself present throughout the trip. At the end of each hallway, Lincoln noticed, sat some sort of gigantic statue. These seemed to appease Lucy and her interests, though her brother didn't understand why.

Lynn seemed to be a little more reserved, cradling her mask under her arm. Other than occasionally glancing at their guide, Lincoln couldn't really notice anything else strange about her.

However, Luan and Luna were a different story. His two older sisters, he noticed, had become a lot more aggressive since arriving at the Lovecraft Manor. Luna was actively adjusting her shirt and wristbands, while Luan was playing with her hair and tying it up in a few different ways. They both were also moving in close proximity to their guide, but for what reason, Lincoln did not know. All he knew was that he had to keep an eye on both of them.

"So, what IS your deal?" Luan asked, directing her question at their polite yet awkward guide. "Why were you in bed with our brother?"

Luna gave a light chuckle, joining in on the just-beginning conversation. "Yeah, man. Why were you in Linc's room, anyway?"

Erik stopped in his tracks, and turned toward the entertainment duo. The girls could tell he was blushing a bright red, but he spoke with his usual calm, low tone.

"Well, it would be more accurate to say that Lincoln was in my room." Erik replied, doing his best to not look directly at either Luna or Luan. "B-besides, I was just indulging in some light r-reading of some contemporary l-literature."

"In your neon-pink underwear covered with sparkles?" Luan interjected. "I mean, I think that was the STAR of the show?" Luan chuckled again at her own joke. "Get it?"

"Yeah, sis. We get it. As for you, Mr. Sparkle Crotch…" Luna teased, before straightening her tone out into a stern tone and grabbing him by his neck. "You'd better hope that reading comic books is all you "indulge" in while Lincoln is staying with you, you dig?"

Erik let out an uncomfortable groan, understanding Lincoln's sister's concern.

"Sh-sh-sure thing, Miss L-luna." He stuttered, shifting his weight to stay upright.

Luna let go of her grip on his shirt, satisfied with his response. "Good talk, mate. Now, what can you tell me about Leon? I've been itchin' to meet your gaffer since I got here."

"Oh, me too!" Luan said.

"Me three!" Lynn made her presence known, leaping over Luna. "I hear he's a pro-wrestling champ. That true?" A sly smirk came across Erik's face.

"Why, yes he was. In fact, we used to be tag-team champions." Erik boasted, before quickly shifting back to his neutral expression. "Well, until he quit."

Lynn looked at their guide with a look of disbelief on her face. "Why'd he quit?! Being a pro-wrestling champion would be a dream come true!"

"Yeah, it was for me, too." Erik replied, a hint of sorrow in his voice. "Leon just…got tired of it."

"Woah, dude. That's bogus." Luna said, momentarily forgetting about her plans. "That'd be like giving up on being a musician, mate."

"Yeah, or giving up a life of funny. " Luan added.

"Well, given that he has resigned from his positions in both Sub-Rock Records and The Funny Bone, you ladies aren't that far from the truth." Erik sounded a little sad. Lincoln assumed it was due to being involved with these projects himself.

"I don't get it." Lincoln stated, moving up to join his sisters in the conversation. "If he enjoyed doing these things, why give them up?"

Erik looked down at Lincoln, his tone still sullen. "Well, if I were to venture a guess, it would be because of the funeral arrangements."

The Loud siblings had completely forgotten that they were only here because of Leon's parent's passing. Being in the presence of lavish and luxury had, and to some extent still did, cloud their empathy for both Leon and Erik, who had just lost his parents and good friends respectively.

Erik sighed and checked his pocket watch once again.

"Well, it looks like I don't have time for the full tour, like I planned." Erik lamented, pulling out a few sheets of old parchment and handing them to Lincoln, Luna, Luan, and Lynn. "It seems like Miss Leni and Miss Lucy have found their ways elsewhere."

Lincoln and his sisters turned and noticed, they HAD lost track of their other siblings. Lucy, he figured, would be fine on her own. But Leni was a different story.

"Okay, guys. I'll go find Leni and make sure she doesn't do anything…too "Leni-Like". I'll see you guys back at the rooms." Lincoln gave Luna, Luan, and Lynn quick hugs before heading in the opposite direction, back from whence they came.

Luna sighed, taking a look at the map she was given. She wasn't too far from the Sub-Rock recording studio, so she figured she head there.

Luan, with her new map in hand, knew where her destination would be: The Funny Bone was located almost in the center of the manor, so she'd kill two birds with one stone by stopping by and re-orienting herself directionally in the process.

Lynn, however, was too excited to wait. With her map nuzzled deep in her pockets, she was ready to sprint around the manor, preferring to learn as she goes rather than study a boring piece of paper.

"Thanks for the tour, dude." Luna said, turning to thank their tour guide.

But he was nowhere to be found. Erik had just vanished, without a trace. The three sisters were now alone in a dimly lit, unfamiliar hallway.

Little did they know, however, that many joys…and horrors…would await them in the night.


End file.
